TONY: 12 Reasons I Love Him

Today, Tony and I are celebrating our 12th year anniversary.  This is huge!  Colossal!  Supercalifragilistic....okay, I think you get the picture!  (smile)  It is such a great privilege for me to call him my life partner, my boo, my baby, my man, my friend, and my lover.  In honor of our 12 years, I wanted to celebrate 12 things I love about him...(in no particular order)

1. He allows me to be who I am without changing me.  He's comfortable in his skin so he allows me to be comfortable in my own.
2. I love the fact that I am emotionally safe with him.  My pastor's wife used this term and I love it!  I really feel safe with Tony.  I can share my inner most secrets with him and be vulnerable with him without feeling like he'll throw my shortcomings and fears back in my face at a later date.
3. He's an amazing lover and friend.  (Enough said! smile)
4. He is probably the best father that I've ever known and I'm not just saying that.  On a DAILY basis, Tony finds ways to pour into C's & MJ's life.  Quality time with them is a non-negotiable.  
5. I feel physically safe with Tony.  Tony is a 'round the way kind of guy so I always feel safe.  I feel good in knowing that he can hold his own.
6. He's such a softie.  While on the outside, he can really hold his own, on the inside at the core of his being is a man with a generous and sensitive heart towards people.  He reminds me of my birth father in that he will literally give a person his last to make sure that the other person is straight.
7. He is absolutely handsome!  I love his smile and his physical strength.  It does this girl good to walk beside him and know that he's all mine!  smile
8. He adores his mom.  They say how a man treats his mom will tell you how he'll treat his wife.  Absolutely true here.  I love the fact that Tony adores his mom and takes care of her even though she is a very independent spirit!  It's important for him to do things like stop by her house before she gets home at night to turn on her porch light or swing by to cut her grass even if she's not home.  Absolutely love it!  He treats her well and I certainly can't complain about how he treats me.
9. He taught me to confront issues head on!  I grew up being a people-pleaser and consistently avoided confrontations, often to my own detriment.  Tony taught me to speak up for myself and what was right.  This one attribute has totally transformed my life and who I have become.  Thank you baby.
10. He wraps me in his arms and the rest of the world just disappears for a moment.
11. He really loves the Lord.  Tony is not the man you'll find with a Bible under his arm and he may not be the man who can quickly turn to Daniel, Joshua, or Colossians but he is the man who believes in who God is, His power, and how God has radically transformed his own life.  I love the man that he has become in Christ and I continually fall in love with the man who he is becoming in Christ.
12. I love the daddy that he will be to this little girl.  I love the fact that he was sensitive enough to allow me to share with him this strong desire to adopt this little girl and that he too is excited about the thought of his little girl wrapping her petite arms around his neck and calling him daddy.  Thank you baby for standing with me in all that our family is sacrificing to bring our daughter home.

Tony, truly my love, Nothing Has Ever Felt Like This....


Oh....and I can't forget...
In celebrating our love, over the years we've kept a sampling of love letters and cards that we give each other.  I guess one of my primary love languages along with receiving gifts is Words of Affirmation....and baby, you really affirm me.